Beach restrooms could get a face-lift

OCEANSIDE  A plan to spruce up and replace several aging restrooms at Oceanside beaches got a boost Wednesday when the City Council agreed to earmark roughly $3 million for the project.

The council voted 3-0 — with Mayor Jim Wood abstaining and Councilwoman Esther Sanchez absent — to move forward on the project by using some the money the city netted when it recently sold its lease for the Laguna Vista Mobile Estates.

Several representatives of tourism and business organizations — including Visit Oceanside and Main Street Oceanside — spoke in favor of the plan, saying they have received many complaints from tourists about the condition of the beach restrooms.

City Manager Peter Weiss said the restroom project would cost about $2.7 to $3 million. He said the sale of the lease was estimated to earn the city about $5.6 million.

Earlier this month, the council voted to set aside about $650,000 of the Laguna funds to bring more sand to the beach.

All the public restrooms on the beach are more than 30 years old, deteriorating and not meeting the demands of beachgoers, especially during special events and busy summer weekends, officials said.

A plan to replace the restrooms on the beach has been in the works for several years. The project includes replacing the restrooms at Breakwater Way, at the Junior Seau Oceanside Pier Amphitheater and at Sportfisher Drive, as well as the restrooms on the east side of The Strand at Tyson Street. The restrooms at Wisconsin Street and on the Oceanside Municipal Pier would be remodeled.

Lack of funds has prevented the project from going forward.

Councilman Jerry Kern, who proposed the idea of using the Laguna funds for the project, said the condition of the restrooms is one of the top complaints his office receives from residents and visitors.

“This is part of our image that people will remember and I would rather have them not remember the bathrooms than have bad memories of the lousy ones,” Kern said.

Wood said he agreed that the restrooms are in poor shape but he added that he wanted to weigh the alternative uses for the money, including using it for low-income housing projects or to establish “quiet zones” along the railroad tracks.

Weiss said he would bring a report to the council on the possible uses of the Laguna funds next month.